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Wednesday, 30 November 2011

November has arrived. It's the time of the year when the weather is wet all day and my clothes are always damp. This is also the month we experience the highest rainfall in Singapore.

Is it snowing already where you are? I have my share of white fluffy flakes too and they all come falling into my tribal house. Except mine is not snow but mold. Barely the 1st Monday of the month and I already found them sneaking up my stairs.

They always attack my stairs first, just like last November. Actually last year, the stairs were the only place I found them. I cleaned, I repainted and then varnished and I thought they were gone forever. Back again they came, more aggressive this time around. By this Monday, I already see them on my walls and floors.

I had to shift everything on the floor away so that I could remove the mold. Even then , some remain stubbornly stuck in the crevices that I cannot reach. Needless to say, my house is in shambles now.

I used to love the rainy season but now that I have to contend with the mold, I am not sure anymore. The one thing I am definite about though is that no matter how well I clean them out this time, they will be back again, same time, same place next year.

Oh dear Sans, I am so sorry. I love this house so much so everytime you write there is something wrong, it makes me sad.:(Wish I could help you with removing mold for good - there was once an anti-fungal remedy over here and it worked quite well but then again we don't have the rainy seasons so don't know it would work for you.Actually there is no snow yet here, barely raining(although it is very cloudy lately) and people in radio say we are facing kind of drought.Hope you got my email?Hugs

Back in Taiwan, I remember my wet laundry hanging on the line for days, never drying, just getting moldy! There is something comforting about monsoon season, though. For some reason, it was calming to me, maybe because it reminded me of the weather here at home. One time during monsoon, as I was riding my bicycle, both brakes went out as I approached a busy intersection. There was nothing to do but coast through the intersection, hoping no oncoming taxis started through early, before the green light. I made it through alive and went straight to the bicycle repair shop. My Mandarin was limited. All I could say was "Shya yu, shya de hen da" (It's pouring down rain)! :-) Thanks, Sans!, for reminding me of some fun memories!

Oh, how terrible Sans! I hope it will not get worse...that would be such a shame for your beautiful house!! Here in the Netherlands no snow either, not even much rain. But they say it will be wet tomorrow.

It's bad news about your wonderful house. I hope you find something that works against mold. We had mold trouble when living in Lima, Peru. I remember using special lamps inside the wardrobes. Even so, I had to throw away a leather coat which used to be black but turned green and smelly. Can you please send some of your rain over to Israel?hugs

Tsk tsk, so that's mold... I rememnber MarG asking if food ever got mold in my house and me answering "no", without truly understanding the question.Now I understand.I am so sorry to see it in your beautiful house, it is such a pity.There must be somethig against fungis that you can spray on any surface, I cannot think that in a humid country they havent made up something. And I'm sure you'll find it.Big hugs, Rosanna

Oh, this really makes me sad - what a pity. Hope you'll find a way to protect it! - Here in Germany we had the driest November ever. If I remember last year I regard this as some gift - no snow shoveling (In 2010 it started to snow early in November and didn't stop till March... aaaaarggghhhh)

Oh Dear! How Distressing! I would be terribly frustrated to think that mold would take over everything! We have had a very wet year here... but now it is cold enough that we run the furnace and everything dries out.... much TOO dry, really.I have no skill with dealing with mold.... there MUST be an on-line site that could give you your answers.....Good Luck! I hope you can find a way to conquer the mold! It would be terrible to have your treasures destroyed!

Hi Sans!Sorry to hear about the moldproblem... But I am sure: After a few days or so the sun will shine and You are Happy mu Friend!

We have it very dark here now. The sun doesn`t seem to show at all, because it is so cloudy and rainy here also, I wish it would turn to snow. The whole scenery is then so much lighter..This time of the Year is called the Polar Night! It means the average darkest time in the winter, in areas where the Sun does not rise at all, North from of the Polar Cirkle. I live close to that place.But I am not alone, and it is ok...HugsKikka

uh uh, mold ... not good. Unfortunately I don't have a remedy for that.We experience the driest and warmest November since they started recording temperatures. That's about 150 years ...I think. It feels strange. More like spring. Especially after living for 8 years "in the cold" aka Canada. ;-)Wish you some dry weather.Christine

Our rainy season is over, though we get much of our water from hurricanes, and we were spared again this year. But it did rain, torrentially, and filled up the ponds and lakes again. Moss and mold were everywhere, on driveways, on walls, on pots, on tree trunks. I love this, but only when it all carpets the outdoors. Inside, not so much. Mold inside the house is a sign of very bad things.

I've never been part of a monsoon-it must go on much longer than you would like it to. But it marks time, doesn't it? And it must be part of the balance of life in your part of the world. November is still the November of my northern childhood for me-cold, with bare black tree branches scratching the sky. Now, in the south, it's green and warm and the light is sharp and clear and low. Is it warm in Singapore, if not dry?

Sans, I'm so sorry to hear about your Moldy Monday. I hope you'll get the problem solved somehow. Last Sunday we had some snow flakes here in Finland. Or maybe it is better to say a few million snow flakes. We had Snowy Sunday! But now, it was raining and all the snow is gone and it is just wet and dark again. Hugs, piikkö

Sans, molds are terrible!!! they produce spores and these are very strong, they survive to almost all the environmental conditions we can imagine. So, you can destroy the vegetative part of the mold quite easily (mycelium), but not the spores. Result, when conditions get better, the mold grows again. Of course one of the conditions is the presence of water...so, you must try to keep your miniatures as dried as possible. There are some products to adsorbe air moisture, may be you can try to put your dollhouse in a close box/place with some of this inside (ex. silicagel). Generally when they are satured they change color, and you can reutilize them after heating in a oven. I don´t know if this is pratical for you, but it works....Here in Lisbon we don´t have snow, winter is mild, today at 9.00 am was 12ºC and the day is sunny, blue sky, but windy.

Bleach, bleach, bleach! This is the only watchword against the mold, but I wonder how it can be sprayed on the walls of the dollhouse without ruining the decor. If you manage to do a complete treatment, you will be able to eradicate the mold in the long term :-)Mini hugs

Hi Alexandra, the weather here is a little erratic but no hail! Rain here is heavy and it can be painful when you are running under it without an umbrella :). But I remember a long time ago when my dad still rode his bike and I was a pinion driver and then we were caught in the rain. Now that really hurt!

Yes, my housemate also suggested silica gel and humidifier or a glass case. I just can't imagine placing bags of silica gel in the house :(. I have done the short term thing but am sure I have not got rid of the spores. I am going to try a diluted version of bleach the next time it happens again. There is anti mold paint but according to my housemate, a layer of varnish may also stop the mold from growing. I have tried that on the wooden surface.

I found out last week that the mold has also grown on the outside of the house which was plastered and then painted. So that part I will try bleach.

I noticed that the areas where I used textured wallpaper was free of mold.

Thanks for the information , Ana! Always good to have a biologist for a friend :). I owe you an email about the trip to Europe. Will write soon :)

O Natalia, be careful what you wish for . It may very well come true, haha! Although I don't know about bringing my house with me but who knows! If I ever visit Washington, I will definitely look you up! :)

Piiko, I still remember my 1st experience of snow. It wasn't what I had expected. I think I was in Japan. But the wondrous one was in Syria . I was walking in a very narrow souk with camels under oil lamps and experiencing a biblical moment and then a perfectly formed snowflake fell on my hand. I have never seen a snowflake until then. And it was every bit as beautiful as a Christmas ornament! Can you imagine my thrill?

After that, snow is beautiful only when it is in the movies or outside a window :). I have fallen way too many times on mushy snow and wet iced floor for me to like walking in winter :).

But the rain, the rain I love, inside or outside and especially when I am running:).

Amy, I love the monsoon period in Singapore especially the Northeast one in Dec.

I say this because we are a tiny island protected from the devastation of some heavy monsoon being surrounded by the Indonesian islands. During this period, we enjoy very cool weather and the rain. It never last long enough for me. It is still warm and even hot in the afternoons but the evenings are mainly windy and chilly.

I may feel differently if I live in the east coast of Malaysia. Once I went to this charming little seaside village with an equally enchanting name like Bubble Village to spend our annual weekend vacation only to find our thatched hut completely blown away leaving only a crooked structure. Our beloved village gone, and no one tried to rebuild it, a completely deserted beach. I was really sad.

Yet, I was just at the museum this evening and reading about the monsoon traders and how thanks to the monsoons, Indian textiles were shipped far and wide from Rome to Indonesia.

So we accept the good with the bad. Like you making beautiful art and being inspired by spores and mushrooms, moss and mold, right?

Betsy, more and more I am thinking of putting my house under an acrylic box. I don't like the idea much though. I think dollhouses should be a place where you can just reach in to take out something for a closer look. How else can you really have fun with your house right?

Birgit, time passes so fast and thanks to Blogland, I experience the seasons the way you guys do when I read your posts. It wasn't so long ago when I read about the relentless snow in March and how Spring came late for some of you. A blink of an eye and we are in winter again.

Rosanna, there is some anti mold thing for the big house but for a wee one, I don't know. After all the painting and wallpapering and the shelves, it is hard to apply the solution, even if I can find something but of course, I will try and do something about it . Luckily the shelves built for the bowls you made me escaped the mold. Phew.

We were just talking about you this morning (me and Fai) :). Planning our European trip next year and deciding whether we fly into Milan. I told him I will try to convince you to travel with us for part of the trip :). What do you think the weather in March will be like?

Well, now that I write about it here, I will really have to make it happen :). I will write you an email soon.

Wow, Jennifer, your Mandarin is excellent! I can totally understand your Anglocised (spelling) Mandarin! You did it in hanyu pinyin too (except shya should be xia) ! Good job!

Mandarin is truly the hardest language to learn so I am very impressed but tsk tsk! You should not ride without brakes! Never again I hope.

What am I saying, I once drove without brakes from my office to home at 10km /hrs. It was a vintage car that was pretty to look at and not much else. I had to junk the car after that. Most grueling drive of my life.

Ewa, it's a chilly night but my heart is warmed because I know somewhere out there in faraway Poland, someone loves my house :). You made me want to go out to the dining room (I am in my bedroom) to give my house a hug :).

I talked about you too this morning :). I am now waiting for your longer reply :) and God willing, maybe we will meet? Then you can show me the anti fungal treatment and I can like buy a whole carton worth ..haha :)

Welcome back to comments! I was beginning to feel Sans deprived!If you want an update here it is : the weather is sunny, blue sky, no clouds and far too warm. Cherry trees are blooming !!!! Too bad in December, they will die at the first chill.I am working like a mad woman at the shop and lived the last week in a dream like atmosphere. I was so tired that I felt mesmerized.KDF killed me , better said my migraine and the lack of sleep...I was too excited to rest properly :o( Can I be more childish than that ?Write about your trip details and I'll try to squeeze some days off. I shall find some days off!!! Hugs, Rosanna

I am definitely Rosanna-deprived, dearie! I am so looking forward to seeing you again *choked with emotions and then cough, heh :)

And I am so *insert swear word forgetful. I kept wanting to ask you about KDF and of course I forgot. I want to go read all about it at your blog. Wait for me.

And no, not childish at all. I finally feel like you and maybe more. Very very resentful that I have no time for the things I love (minis, being here etc) and even the things I only so-so love (running). I am unhappy with the stress at work and don't think it is being selfish or childish!

Will write you very very soon and rant some more :):). Wear a mask when reading my email in case all my angry spit hit you!

If you remember, I had gotten a dollhouse that had been stored in a basement and was full of mold. On the suggestion of another miniaturist, she advised a bathroom cleaner, anti mold. I will gladly send you some! :) The dollhouse came up so cleanly.

I told hubbby of your quandry, I ordinarily would have suggested a dehumidifier, but because your house is not air tight, you would be draining your country of moisture. ;)

Hubby (the engineer) suggests, long flat trays of regular salt around the dollhouse and when they get mushy, discard, wash and replace.

I am serious about the cleaner, I have no problem sending you some. Mold is dangerous to health.

Dale, can you let me know the name of the bathroom cleaner ? I will go and find it 1st and if I can't find it, I may really have to trouble me with sending me some but i am not sure how that can be done with liquid in post? I would have emailed you but thought it may be helpful to the friends here too if they are having the same problem.

Thanks, Dale! I am eternally grateful to you for this suggestion because the problem is still plaguing me !

Hey sweetie! I had to go to the store to find it, as I couldn't remember the name. It's called Tilex Mold and Mildew remover. But, really anything that has bleach in it will work. Anything else just moves the mold around and does not remove it.

Lemme know if you want me to send you some, I'm sure it can be shipped.

ME

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These blogs chronicle my journey into the wonderful world of miniatures.
"The Beginning" is the prequel to it all, the one that triggered my obsession with the weird and wonderful world of doll houses.
"My Maharajah's Palace" is a journal of the trials and tribulations en-route to the building of my Indian Palace.
"Projects, Musings & AOB" is like my workroom or scrapbook of anything minis.